Jeremy Clarkson's anger at ramblers who disturb his peace at lighthouse home

Privacy: Jeremy Clarkson and wife Frances say walkers have destroyed the peace of their Isle of Man home

Controversial TV presenter Jeremy Clarkson is proud to champion the freedom of the individual over Government rules and regulations.

But today he was hoping to curtail the freedom of ramblers and celebrity spotters to ensure his own privacy.

The Top Gear presenter claims he has been driven mad by walkers who have destroyed the peace of his hideaway home at a remote beauty spot.

Usually the TV star loves being the centre of attention, but he says
celebrity spotters have gone too far by coming up to his luxury house
snapping pictures and hurling abuse.

The dispute broke out in
2005 when Clarkson closed a 250 yard stretch of the path on his land
and diverted it around his multi-million pound lighthouse home on the
windswept Langness peninsula on the Isle of Man.

Although not
legally a public footpath, campaigners claim that historically the
landowner had granted 'permissive rights' to walkers.

But the
move caused outage among residents and walkers who say the ancient path
had been used for generations and should be designated as an
established right of way.

Now after a four-year wrangle the dispute has finally come to a head at a public inqury which will rule on who is in the right.

But Clarkson, 49, has warned he will sell up if the hearing decides that the footpath should be open to everyone.

Clarkson
has said: 'The whole point of buying a house on the end of a peninsula
is so that you get five minutes not being bothered. When you are in the
public eye it's very easy to be portrayed as a villain. Actually, in
this case, I'm not.'

The broadcaster's wife Frances Clarkson told the inquiry that walkers on the peninsula are abusive to members of her family at least twice a week.

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Mrs Clarkson, who was born on the island, said members of the public had even abused their young children.

She said she and her husband had also struggled to enforce a rule which required dog walkers to keep their animals on a lead.

Mrs
Clarkson claimed people continually attempt to get up close to their
home to take photos, but the final straw came in 2005 when fans came up
to their window and took photos of her husband as his relaxed with his
children.

Hideaway: The Top Gear presenter is hoping to limit access to land around his luxury home, after suffering abuse and invasion of privacy from celebrity spotters

Clarkson married Frances in May 1993, she was his manager at the time, and the couple bought the lighthouse as a holiday home in 2004.

The couple currently spend most of the time at their home in the Cotswolds with their three children Emily, 15, Finlo,13 and 10 year-old Katya.

Mrs Clarkson told the inquiry they had been constantly badgered by walkers and celebrity spotters intruding on their privacy.

She
said: 'It was clear from the outset that there was a certain group of
people who, probably because of my husband's public profile, appeared
to have a vendetta against us, and primarily against my husband.'

'In
order to maintain our privacy we shut off a short section of the land.
The general public have had our permission to use the rest of it,' she
said.

'We have had a small minority of rather vociferous ramblers who want to implement this as a right of way past our windows.

Dispute: Mr Clarkson has closed a 250-yard stretch of the path on his land and diverted it around his multi-million pound lighthouse home

'The reason we came here was for my husband to have a bit of peace of quiet and tranquility. We had people come up to him at close range and take photographs even when he's sat eating a pork pie relaxing with the kids. It's our little sanctuary which I'm afraid has been rather ruined.

'It's heartbreaking. It's the place that I brought my family to with such a happy heart and we have had such a horrible experience. It's very sad.'

In her evidence Mrs Clarkson emphasied that she had never refused permission to walk the land to anybody who had asked.

Ian Costain, a campaigner for Public Rights of Way Langness (PROWL), said the group would produce evidence that members of the public have used the network of footpaths 'as of right' for 21 years and that as a result a right of way had been established and the paths should now be designated as such.

But the Clarksons' counsel James Ramsden said in his opening address that no rights of way had ever existed on the land.

He said it was a sad fact that there had been 'personal hostility' and a 'lack of a willingness to compromise' by a minority in PROWL.

After four days of hearing evidence, today inquiry inspector Roy Hickey visited the peninsula, with the Clarkson's legal team and members of the pressure group PRoWL. The TV host has stayed away from the proceedings.